It is easy to get spoiled if you have built great workout facility at home or you have a fully equipped gym to use for your bodybuilding program. With plenty of weights at hand, you can complete circuit training and mix up your exercise routines each week so that you rotate your workouts to give each muscle group adequate stress and rest. That approach is an excellent way to fast track your path to losing weight and building muscle.
When you have to travel, though, you may not have sufficient equipment to continue your bodybuilding program with as much variety as you can at home. But that doesn’t mean you cannot work out at all. There are a number of great ways to still get a good workout even while living out of a suitcase in a hotel room.
You can lay the groundwork for your trip in advance if you prepare well. For one thing, if you have a choice of hotel you will patronize on your visit to a new city, make some phone calls to find out which hotels that fit the goals of the trip have exercise facilities. Of course, you will not find a hotel that has a gym that is as fully equipped as your home gym. But you can pick a hotel that offers the most exercise options to you.
Also, ask the hotel about gyms that are located close to the hotel. Many hotels offer discounts or passes to customers to local establishments which would give you access to a fully equipped gym without a lot of inconvenience or additional cost. If the hotel isn’t prepared to help you find a gym to use, you can use Google maps to find what kind of workout facilities are nearby. With a few phone calls, you may find one that will help you out and give you the same resources you have to keep your bodybuilding program on track even when on the road.
You can also prepare to take your bodybuilding exercises on the road when you pack. Now, you cannot pack weights for obvious reasons. But you can pack lighter items that can help you get a workout each day. By knowing in advance what to expect outside, you can pack workout clothing so you can go out of the hotel and take a run or workout in a local park. You can also pack lightweight exercise equipment such as a jump rope that can serve you well when you want to get exercise with little more at your disposal than your hotel room floor space.
Another way to prepare for your traveling workout needs is to work with your trainer to put together workouts you can do in your room each day that give you the intensity you need without any additional equipment. There are lots of types of exercises that you can do with little more than the floor and maybe a chair. You can use burpees, sit-ups, push-ups, squats and thrusts. You can even do the push-ups with your legs on the chair to increase the intensity of the workout. And by designing different exercise programs each day, you can get the variety you want to put the emphasis on different muscle groups with each exercise.
To take your bodybuilding program on the road, it really is a matter or preparation and some creative thinking. By being ready when you must be away from your gym, you can still stay in shape and even advance your bodybuilding goals. And because you put in the thought and effort to keep your bodybuilding training going even when traveling, you won’t lose any momentum on your workout goals.
Need more ideas? Here are some successful Body Building Techniques
The most successful body building techniques incorporate proven weight routines. A weight routine is a set of exercises, done in repetition, that develops specific parts of the body. For example, to build chest muscles, a body builder may use a weight routine that incorporates flat bench press (3 repetitions), bench dumbbell (2 repetitions) and inclined bench press (3 repetitions). The other important function a weight routine serves is to split a training program so different muscle groups are used.
Building Biceps
Dumbbells are a common piece of equipment used to build bigger biceps. The most popular technique to get the desired result is to hold the dumbbell closer to the inside of the plates. Routines for building biceps include dumbbell curls either inclined or standing, or both.
Building Chest Muscle
Good chest muscle building exercises are routines that incorporate bench presses and flyes. An even more effective way to build chest muscle is to split the chest into 3 zones – upper, middle and lower. By working each separately, using exercises that specifically target that area, you can build up some impressive chest muscle fairly quickly.
For instance, do your upper chest exercises on a 30-45% incline bench. Incline barbell and incline dumbbell flyes are excellent for working upper chest muscles. On the other hand, the lower chest muscles are best exercised using a 30-45% decline bench. You would use decline barbell and decline dumbbell flyes to build these muscles. A flat bench works best for the middle chest muscles. So you’d do flat barbell and flat dumbbell flyes on a flat bench.
Moving Onto Shoulder Training
The shoulders are made up of 3 main muscles – the lateral, anterior and posterior deltoids. Effective shoulder training to get big shoulders requires working all 3. The anterior deltoid usually gets some work in chest workouts. To build up the lateral and posterior deltoids requires additional exercises targeting these two muscles. Generally the best way to do this is with heavy barbell and dumbbell pressing in short reps as opposed to a lot of rep work with lighter weights. You should also focus on shoulder exercises that work effectively with progressive overload, a technique used to progressively add more weight to what is being lifted.
Matching Up The Back With Back Exercises
The back is one area many body builders overlook. But if you want your back to match up with those impressive chest, shoulder and bicep muscles, you will need to include back exercises in your bodybuilding routine.
Good workouts for the Lower Trapezius or lower back muscles include stiff-legged good mornings and hyper-extensions. For the middle back muscles or Rhomboids, you can do a seated cable row and bent-over barbell rows. Your Latissimus Dorsi will benefit from wide-grip lat pull-downs and pull-ups. And last but not least, try upright rows and barbell shrugs for your Trapezius.
But before starting any body-building workout, be sure to warm up properly. This will reduce the risk of damaging muscles and tendons. Stretch the muscles you’re going to be working. Also avoid lifting more weight than your body can capably handle to avoid serious injury.